Packing machine, particularly a machine for packing cigarettes or the like

Abstract: A packaging machine, especially one for packing cigarettes or the like, comprises a feeder/gatherer (3, 103) of cigarettes in ordered groups from a magazine of loose cigarettes (2), a first forming unit (5, 6) which forms a foil wrapping, a second forming unit (13, 14, 15) which forms a hard- or soft-type packet wrapping around said groups of cigarettes (12) wrapped in the foil wrapping, means for feeding the packaging material (10, 28, 48), such as sheets of foil and, depending on the types of packaging, wrapping sheets (44) and transverse closure strips (47) or one or more blank parts (130, 31) constituting various parts of a hard packet, and also a magazine (18, 19) for storing discharged finished packets (20). According to the invention, the working parts of the machine and the path followed by the products in various stages of packaging are distributed and interconnected within a small vertical space in such a way that the working parts and the products are directly accessible, visually and manually, to the operative personnel.

Description: The invention relates to a packaging machine, especially a machine for packing cigarettes or the like, comprising: a feeder/gatherer of cigarettes in a succession of ordered groups of cigarettes from a magazine of loose cigarettes; a forming unit which forms an inner wrapping, especially one of foil, by folding a sheet of foil around each ordered group of cigarettes; a feeder of sheets of foil from a continuous web which is unwound from a reel; and for the forming of a so-called limp or soft packet a subsequent packaging line with: a forming unit which forms a packet wrapping around each group of cigarettes wrapped in the inner wrapping by folding a wrapping sheet around it; a feeder of wrapping sheets to said forming unit which forms the packet wrapping, from a web of wrapping, which is unwound from a reel; a subsequent unit which applies a transverse closure strip to the top of the packet, e.g. a tax label, monopoly label or the like and a feeder which feeds said transverse strips from a continuous web which is unwound from a reel; while for the forming of the so-called hard or box-like packet, there is an alternative subsequent packaging line with: a forming unit which forms hard packets by folding one or more blank parts corresponding to individual parts of a packaging box (hard packet) around each group of cigarettes in the foil wrapping; a feeder which feeds a succession of individual blanks from packs of blanks lying on top of each other; optionally, in combination with said blank feeder, a further feeding/blanking unit for an optional further blank part corresponding to a part of the packaging box, e.g. a so-called collar, from a web of material which is unwound from a reel; and also, downstream of said two alternative packaging lines, a magazine for storing discharged finished packets; and in which all the working parts and the path followed by the groups of cigarettes and wrapping materials are arranged and fit within a vertical space in the front side of the machine which is in the front-to-rear direction of the machine with respect to the total dimensions of the machine; said arrangements, said path and the front-to-rear dimensions of the vertical front spage being such that the working parts and the cigarettes in various stages of packaging are directly accessible, visually and manually, to the operator, and wherein the forming units that form he so-called soft packet, those that form the hard packet (or box) and also those that form the inner foil wrapping comprise, respectively, one or more drums for folding the packaging material and one or more drums for feeding the groups of cigarettes, which drums are supported on the end of a projecting spindle in said vertical space, are rotated about axes that lie in the front-to-rear direction of the machine and are aligned with each other, side by side or one above the other, in said vertical space A packaging machine of this kind is known from the document FR-A-2228672 which discloses the working stations of a cigarette packaging machine which fit, along with the path followed by the cigarettes, within a vertical space having small dimensions in the front-to-rear direction, compared i.e. to the arrangement according to the document DE-A-3347344. It is an object of the invention to provide a packaging machine of the aforesaid type such that its construction is more efficient and permits a better direct visual monitoring of all stages in the packaging process and therefore permits prompt manual intervention by the operators to eliminate or correct any errors, for example mispositioning and the like, in the course of the production process, preventing said errors from causing repercussions in later processing stages, with consequent jamming and long hold-ups of the machine and enabling faulty working parts to be replaced as quickly as possible where necessary. The invention achieves the above objects with a packaging machine, especially a machine for packaging cigarettes or the like, according to the pre-characterizing part of claim 1 and characterized in that, the groups of cigarettes in the various stages of packaging are transferred from one forming unit to the next by socketed transfer discs that are rotated about axes parallel to the vertical plane and perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction of the machine, especially vertical or horizontal axes, and that the vertical front space has a dimension in the front-to-rear direction of the machine that is approximately equal to the diameter of the transfer discs that rotate about the vertical and horizontal axes perpendicular to said front-to-rear direction, and said dimension corresponds at all events to approximately a measure of from two to three times the axial length of the cigarettes or is slightly greater than this. In this case, the feeder/gatherer which forms the succession of groups of cigarettes and the magazine which stores the discharged packets are located in said vertical front space behind the folding and feeding drums of the forming units. A further characteristic of the invention is that the reels of the web of foil, of the web of wrapping for the soft packet and alternatively of the web of material for forming part of the blank corresponding to a hard packaging part or box are likewise located in the vertical front space and are aligned with the folding and feeding drums of the forming units. Advantageously the reel of the web of foil and the reel of the web of wrapping or alternatively of the web of material for a part of the blank (collar) are located in the lower part of one or other of the opposite ends of the machine. The path of the groups of cigarettes during the packaging process is such that on the one hand the corresponding forming unit which forms the inner foil wrapping and on the other the mutually alternative forming units which form the wrapping for the soft packet or for the hard packet are located in that part of the machine which corresponds to the end having the associated reel of foil web and wrapping web for the soft packet or the reel of the web of material for the blank part of the hard packet. The feeders of the foil web and wrapping web for the soft packet, and of the web of material for the blank part of the hard packet are provided with an automatic reel-changing device linked to a magazine for a row of replacement reels which extends in the front-to-rear direction of the machine from the rear side to the front side and in the lower area of the corresponding end, said magazine being accessible from the rear side of the machine and/or of the corresponding end. The packaging machines according to the invention may be specifically made only in the version for making soft packets or hard packets of cigarettes. The invention comprises one particular embodiment of said packaging machines which is convertible from a machine for packaging cigarettes in soft packets into a machine for packaging cigarettes in hard packets and vice versa. In this case, the packet forming unit is made so as to be convertible into either of the two versions for forming the soft packet and hard packet, with the folding members and other specific members for forming the soft packet and hard packet being mounted in their predetermined working positions on a supporting item which is releasably fixable in a predetermined position to the machine and is provided with means for releasably coupling it to the drive unit of the machine. For the reels of wrapping web for the soft packet and the reels of the web of material for the blank part (collar) of the hard packet, the same feeder is used with the same magazine and the same automatic reel changer, while other working units not used in either version of the machine, such as the applicator of the transverse closure strip of the soft packet and the associated strip feeder, are likewise mounted on supporting items releasably fixable to the machine and provided with means for releasably coupling them to the drive unit of the machine. It is possible in one variant to arrange that at least some of the working members, that is to say folders, locators and the like, for forming the soft packet and/or the hard packet may also be permanently connected to the drums of the forming unit, being supported or simply driven only in the corresponding hard-packet or soft-packet version of the machine. In another variant, the machine according to the invention is of a modular construction, comprising a common block containing the feeder/gatherer of a succession of ordered groups of cigarettes from a magazine of loose cigarettes, the forming unit which forms the inner foil wrapping and the corresponding feeder of sheets of foil with its magazine of replacement reels and the automatic reel changer, to which common block, downstream of the forming unit which forms the inner foil wrapping, there can be fitted, releasably and each being replaceable by the other, two different blocks, one for forming the soft packet and containing the forming unit which forms the outer wrapping of the packet, the associated feeder of the web of wrapping, the magazine of replacement reels and the automatic reel changer, in addition to the applicator of the transverse closure strip with its feeder and the magazine for storing discharged packets, and the other for forming the hard packet (box) containing the forming unit which forms the hard packet, the feeder of the succession of blanks from packs of blanks and the feeding/forming unit which produces a blank part for another part of the box (collar) from a web of material and the associated magazine for the replacement reels and the reel changer and magazine for storing discharged packets. Also forming the subject of the invention are other characteristics which further improve the packaging machine described above. These are the subject of the dependent claims. The special characteristics of the invention and the advantages procured thereby will be dealt with in greater detail in the description of certain preferred embodiments illustrated by way of non-limiting examples in the appended drawings, in which: Figs. 1A and 1B each illustrate part of a schematic perspective view of the common basic structure of a packaging machine that can be converted from a machine for packaging cigarettes in a hard box (hard packet) into a machine for packaging them in soft packets by replacing certain working items. Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the feeder/gatherer which takes loose cigarettes from a magazine and sends them out in a succession of ordered groups of cigarettes. Fig. 3 is an enlarged schematic view, in perspective, of the modules for converting the basic structure shown in Figs. 1A and 1B into a hard-packet machine. Figs. 4A and 4B show in a similar way to Figs. 1A and 1B the packaging machine in the version for packing cigarettes in hard packets. Fig. 5 shows an enlarged perspective view of a detail relating to the hard packet forming unit, comprising the collar applicator means and the associated disc for transferring the groups of cigarettes wrapped in the inner foil wrapping from the unit for forming the inner foil wrapping to the unit for forming the hard packet. Fig. 6 shows in a similar way to Fig. 5 the discs for transferring the finished hard cigarette packet from its forming unit to the magazine where the discharged packets are stored. Fig. 7 shows the detachable conversion module of the machine in Figs. 1A and 1B comprising the feeder of the transverse closure strip for the soft packet and the applicator that applies it to the tops of the packets. Fig. 8 is an enlarged schematic view, in perspective, of another module relating to the forming unit of the machine shown in Figs. 1A and 1B for converting it into a soft-packet forming unit. Figs 9A and 9B show, in the same way as Figs. 1A, 1B and 4A, 4B, a schematic perspective view of the soft-packet cigarette packaging machine. Fig. 10 is an enlarged perspective view relating to the discs for transferring the soft packets from a drum of the soft-packet forming unit to an applicator for applying a transverse closure strip to the top of said packets, and then to the magazine where the discharged finished packets are stored. Fig. 11 is a schematic perspective view showing the possible replacements for conversions of the construction shown in Figs. 7 to 10. Fig. 12 is a schematic view showing in principle what possible combinations there are for a machine according to the invention of modular construction. Fig. 13 is a schematic perspective view of the common block shown in Fig. 12. Fig. 14 shows the machine block that connects with the common block to form the soft packet version of the packaging machine. Fig. 15 is a schematic perspective view of an enlarged detail relating to the feeder for feeding the transverse closure strip to the associated applicator and to the discs for transferring the soft packet from its forming unit to the magazine where the discharged packets are stored. Figs. 16A and 16B each show one part of a schematic perspective view of the block that connects to the common block to form the hard packet version of the packaging machine. Fig. 17 is a schematic perspective view of an enlarged detail relating to the forming unit which forms the hard packet as shown in the version of Figs. 16A and 16B. Figs. 18A and 18B show, in the same way as Figs. 2A and 2B, the soft packet version of the cigarette packaging machine produced by connecting together the two modular blocks as shown in Fig. 12. Figs. 19A and 19B show, in the same way as Figs. 1A and 1B, the hard packet version of the cigarette packaging machine produced by connecting together two modular blocks as shown in Fig. 12. Figs. 1A and 1B show the basic structure, denoted as a whole by the numeral 1, of a packaging machine according to the invention in a construction that can be converted from a cigarette packaging machine that produces hard packets (boxes) or alternatively soft packets, and which comprises a plurality of working parts common to both versions, these being converted to allow it to be used in one of the two applications by replacing only certain working parts or certain working units specific to the packets in question. With reference also to Fig. 2, the basic structure of the machine comprises at one end of the machine a hopper 2 which feeds loose cigarettes oriented in the front-to-rear direction of the machine. Inside the hopper 2 the cigarettes are distributed to three or more transfer stations 102, in each of which a horizontal row is formed of cigarettes lined up transversely side by side. Each row of cigarettes in the three stations 102 is displaced vertically relative to that of the other rows so that each forms one of three superimposed layers of cigarettes which are fed in succession by push members indicated schematically by the arrow 4 into a cradle 103 on an endless conveyor belt 3. The conveyor belt 3 is provided with a plurality of said cradles 103 and is advanced step by step past the hopper 2 transversely to the cigarettes, and each cradle 103 is stopped in succession in front of each station 102 from where the rows of cigarettes are transferred. The ordered groups of cigarettes formed in the cradles 103 of the conveyor belt 3 are fed towards the opposite end of the machine 1 to a first forming unit which forms a foil wrapping. Laterally to the side of, and forwards of, the conveyor belt 3 is a socketed drum 5 feeding individual ordered groups of cigarettes from the cradles 103 to a subsequent socketed drum 6 which folds a sheet of foil. The socketed feeding drum 5 is mounted on the end of a projecting spindle on the front side of the machine and is rotated step by step about a horizontal front-to-rear axis synchronously with the conveyor belt 3 and with the steps of the folding drum 6 which is likewise supported on the end of a projecting spindle and rotates about a horizontal front-to-rear axis in the opposite direction to the feeding drum 5. The two drums 5 and 6 are horizontally adjacent and perfectly aligned with each other. With each step of rotation, the feeding drum 5 positions two diametrically opposite sockets, one in a position that coincides axially with a cradle 103 of the conveyor belt 3 and the other in a position that coincides radially with an adjoining socket in the adjacent folding drum 6. The ordered groups of cigarettes are transferred into the socket of the feeding drum 5 by axial push means (arrow 7) and out of the diametrically opposite socket of this drum into the adjoining socket of the folding drum 6 by radial push means (not shown). The feeding drum 5 is provided with means (not shown in detail) for collecting and locating the sheet of foil in a predetermined position between the two opposite sockets of the feeding drum 5 and the folding drum 6. These means may take any form and are preferably constructed in accordance with the disclosure in a patent application by the same proprietor. The transferring of the group of cigarettes from one drum 5 to the other 6 simultaneously draws the sheet of foil which is folded into a U around this group of cigarettes, while with the subsequent steps of rotation of the folding drum 6, the group of cigarettes with its sheet of foil folded into a U is delivered to successive stations which fold the sheet at the top and bottom and on the radially outermost side of the group of cigarettes, which folding stations are distributed around the periphery of this folding drum. In the various folding stations are folding means, which for the sake of clarity and because they do not form the subject of the invention, being known per se, are not illustrated in detail. Connecting with the feeding drum 5 is a unit for feeding sheets of foil from a continuous web 9 drawn from a reel 10. The foil sheet feeding unit comprises a plurality of drawing rollers, defectors and at least one cutting knife. The drawing rollers rotate about front-to-rear axes and the web is fed from below so as to be vertically aligned with the feeding drum 5. The reel containing the foil web 10 is supported so as to rotate about a front-to-rear axis in a position of alignment with the drums 5 and 6. The reel is located in the unwinding station of an automatic reel-changing device, especially of the type described in a patent application belonging to the same proprietor. The reel-changing device comprises a magazine for a row of replacement reels 10'. The magazine is located in the lower part of the end of the machine and the axis of the row of replacement reels 10' is oriented in the front-to-rear direction of the machine. The magazine extends preferably from the rear side to the front side of the machine and may be accessible from the rear side, from the front side and from the end. The unwinding station is likewise located in the lower region of the machine, in an intermediate position between the first replacement reel 10' and the feeding drum 5. Downstream of the foil wrapping forming unit, at the opposite end, are three more socketed drums 13, 14, 15 which also rotate about axes lying in the front-to-rear direction of the machine and are in line with each other and with the folding drum 6 and feeding drum 5 of the foil wrapping forming unit. With reference to the path of the groups of cigarettes in the packaging process, the two first drums 13, 14 are adjacent to each other at approximately the same level, while the third drum 15 is located vertically above the intermediate drum 14. Between the first socketed drum 13 of the packet forming unit and the folding drum 6 of the foil wrapping forming unit is a disc 11 for transferring the group of cigarettes wrapped in the foil wrapping and marked 12. With particular reference to Figs. 1A, 1B and 5, the feeding and folding drums 5 and 6 respectively of the foil wrapping forming unit comprise sockets able to accommodate the groups of cigarettes oriented sideways in the radial direction, while the sockets of the drums 13 to 15 are such as to accommodate the foil-wrapped groups of cigarettes positioned tangentially to the drum with the longitudinal axes of the cigarettes parallel with the axis of rotation of said drum. The transfer disc 11 is rotated step by step, synchronized with the steps of drums 5, 6, 13, 14, 15 about a vertical axis perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction of the machine. On diametrically opposite peripheral sides, the transfer disc 11 has two sockets which each accommodate one group of cigarettes in its foil wrapping. The sockets are designed to accommodate the group of cigarettes 12 with the foil wrapping in a flat horizontal position coplanar with the disc and oriented radially sideways with respect to the axis of rotation of the transfer disc 11. The transfer disc 11 is so positioned that with one 180° rotational step, one of the sockets lines up with the corresponding socket of the folding drum 6 on the side diametrically opposite the transfer drum 5 in a vertically downwardly displaced position, while the diametrically opposite socket stops vertically over the corresponding topmost socket of the first socketed drum 13. The foil-wrapped group of cigarettes 12 is transferred from the folding drum 6 to the transfer disc 11 by a radial expulsion push means (not illustrated in detail) which may be of similar construction to the push means used to transfer the group of cigarettes from the drum 5 to said drum 6, and which places said group 12 in a position of vertical coincidence above the socket of the transfer disc 11. A second vertical push means illustrated schematically by the arrow 17 then pushes said group 12 down into the socket of the transfer disc 11. The transferring of the group 12 from the transfer disc 11 to the socket beneath it of the first drum 13 is likewise performed by a vertical push means similar to the above and indicated schematically by the arrow 17'. In the top part of the machine, approximately vertically above the cradle 103 conveyor belt 3 is a magazine for storing discharged packets: this extends approximately from near the drum 15 of the convertible packet-wrapping forming unit to the hopper 2 of loose cigarettes. The storage magazine comprises two horizontal transport tracks 18, 19, one vertically above the other and both running parallel to the longitudinal length of the machine, in which rows of adjacent finished packets of cigarettes 20 are formed. In the lower transport track 18 the row of packets is advanced towards the hopper 2, while in the upper transport track 19 the row of cigarettes is advanced towards the opposite end of the machine. The transport tracks 18, 19 denoted in the figures by the row of packets 20 may take any form and may for example consist of at least two adjacent endless horizontal conveyor belts running in opposite directions, which belts support opposite sides of the packets 20. Preferably, the transport tracks are designed to be adaptable to the dimensions of the packet 20, in order that, for example, the packets can be carried either standing up (Figs. 9A, 9B and 18A, 18B) or lying flat (Figs 1A, 1B, 4A, 4B, 19A, 19B). For this purpose at least one of the two opposing conveyor belts that form the tracks may be vertically moveable in both directions parallel with the other conveyor belt. The outlet end of the lower track 18 and the inlet end of the upper track 19 are vertically aligned with each other. The transfer from one track to the other may be accomplished by any means. In the example shown in Figs. 1A, 1B this is done by a transfer wheel 21 having a plurality of radial spokes with sockets 121, the spokes being arranged in, for example, a cross. The wheel is supported on the end of a projecting spindle on which it rotates step by step about a front-to-rear axis of the machine in a laterally displaced position forward of the transport tracks 18, 19. With each rotational step of said wheel 21, an empty socket 121 is brought to the outlet end of the lower track 18 and the opposite full socket to the inlet end of the upper track 19. The packets 20 are transferred by push means (not illustrated in detail) which move said packets in the front-to-rear direction of the machine as indicated by the arrows 22, 23. Between the drum 15 of the convertible packet forming unit and the inlet end of the lower transport track 18 are two transfer discs 24, 23. The transfer disc 24 rotates step by step about a horizontal axis perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction of the machine. The transfer disc 24 is interposed between the socketed drum 15 and another transfer disc 23 which is on the opposite side from the drum 15. The transfer disc 23 is supported so as to rotate about a vertical axis perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction of the machine and comprises at least two diametrically opposite sockets constructed so as to accommodate the packet in a tangential position, with the longitudinal axis of the packet perpendicular to its own axis of rotation. The first transfer disc 24 has four sockets 124 oriented like the terminal arms of a swastika and in such a way that two diametrically opposite sockets 124 coincide in position with the socket of the drum 15 and with the socket of the second transfer disc 23, while the corresponding packet accommodated tangentially on the drum 15 can be transferred by radial expulsion from the associated socket of the drum 15 into the disc-coplanar socket 124, with the longitudinal axis of the cigarettes oriented front-to-rear; and the packet in the diametrically opposite socket coinciding with the adjacent socket of the second transfer disc 23 can be transferred by a parallel movement in the radial direction of said second transfer disc 23. The socket of the second transfer disc 23 furthest from the transfer disc 24 is vertically lined up under the inlet end of the lower transport track 18 of the storage magazine and the corresponding packet is fed to said transport track 18 by a vertical upward movement denoted by the arrow 26. The groups of cigarettes can be transferred between the individual drums 13, 14, 15 by a similar process to that described previously, using push means or any other means. In predetermined positions in the area of the packet forming unit and of its drums 13 to 15, as well as of the transfer discs 23, 24, there are parts 27 of means for releasable coupling to the machine's drive unit. At the opposite end from the end containing the hopper 2 of loose cigarettes, in an approximately symmetrically identical position, is a reel changer with an unwinding station for a reel of wrapping material 28 in web form and with a magazine for a row of replacement reels 28' oriented in the front-to-rear direction of the machine, these components being basically identical to those described earlier in relation to the feeding of the foil web 9. On the rear side of the machine, in the area of the transport tracks 18, 19 of the storage magazine, and beneath these tracks, is a feed magazine bearing the general reference 29 for feeding individual packs of blanks 30. The magazine extends in the longitudinal direction of the machine and accommodates a row of adjacent packs 30 of blanks in a predetermined position relative to the groups of cigarettes in the convertible forming unit. As illustrated in Fig. 3, for the construction of a machine for packing cigarettes in hard packets consisting of a box obtainable by folding a preformed blank 130 and applying a so-called collar 31, there are two modules that can be attached releasably to the convertible forming unit comprising the three drums 13 to 15. The module bearing the general reference 32 has a supporting item (not illustrated in detail) that can be releasably fastened in the area beneath the drums 13 and 14. The supporting item carries in a predetermined position one part 33 of the means permitting releasable coupling to the machine's drive unit which is complementary to the part 27 provided on the machine itself. Mounted on the supporting item are also a collar applicator disc 34 which is rotated step by step about a vertical axis, one or more guide rollers for a web of material drawn from the reel 28 in the unwinding station of the corresponding reel changer and upstream of the applicator disc 34 a cutting unit 35 which cuts the collars 31 from the web of material. As can be seen in Figs. 4A and 4B showing the complete machine for making hard packets, the module 32 can be fastened to the machine in such a position that the collar 31 applicator disc 34 is in a predetermined position below the drum 13. Also mounted on the module 32 are the collar 31 moving means whose movements are illustrated by the arrows 36, 37, 38. The guide rollers 39 and the cutting unit 35 which cuts the collar from the web of material (in this case a pair of rollers), all present on the module, are rotatable about front-to-rear axes and are perfectly aligned with the direction of feed of the web of material from the reel 28, that is with said reel 28. A second releasable module 40 which likewise has a supporting item and one part 33 of the means for coupling it to the machine motor unit, carries the means for folding the blank around the groups of cigarettes with the foil wrapping on the drum 15. These means are illustrated schematically and bear the general reference 41 and may also comprise other working parts for forming the hard packet, e.g. glue applicators, driers and the like. Furthermore the module 40 also has the means for feeding individual blanks 103, e.g. a succession of blanks 130 from a pack of blanks 30, and, if required, means for taking or accepting successive packs of blanks 30 from the magazine 29 located on the rear side of the machine. Hence, as indicated in Figs. 4A and 4B, when the module 40 is in position, the drum 15 assumes the function of a blank folding drum connected to the blank feeder and to the folding means 41. The drum 13 meanwhile assumes the function of a collar applicator drum, while the intermediate drum 14 assumes that of a transfer drum between said two drums 13 and 15. According to another characteristic, the means for feeding the succession of blanks 130 (which are not shown in detail but are represented by said succession of blanks) are designed to accept a succession of packs 30 of blanks moved by conveyor means, for example push means, forwards in the front-to-rear direction of the machine and in a predetermined position relative to the drum 15, so that the individual blanks 130 are fed between the drum 14 and the drum 15 in a horizontal transverse movement. The blank feeder 130 can also accommodate a succession of packs of blanks 30 standing vertically on top of each other. Figs. 5 and 6 show in greater detail how the working parts of the packaging machine cooperate to produce hard packets as shown in Figs. 4A, 4B in relation to the feeding of the blank 130, the packets and the collar 31. Figs. 7 and 8 show the modules for producing the soft-packet version of the packaging machine. In this case, the reels 28 and 28' are reels of material in web form for the outer wrapping of the packet. The packet is formed by wrapping a sheet of wrapping material around each group of cigarettes with its foil wrapping in much the same way as the latter itself is formed. A first module 43 constructed like modules 32 and 40 carries, on a supporting item, that can be releasably fastened to the machine and that has a coupling part 33 complementary to the part 27 of the machine, a unit 45 for drawing and cutting the wrapping sheets 44 from the web of wrapping material taken from the reel 28. This unit 45 may be similar to the foil sheet feeder unit described earlier and is aligned with the reel 28 in the unwinding station and with the drum 13. In this case the drum 13 has collecting/locating means (not shown in detail) which are basically similar to those of the foil sheet transfer drum 5. Hence Fig. 8 shows the sheets 44 in the various positions on the drum 13. Said collecting/locating means, too, may be on the module 43 or may be integrated with or permanently attached to the drum 13, remaining inactive in the hard packet version. One possible embodiment of the collecting/locating means is that disclosed in another patent application belonging to the same proprietor. As shown in Figs. 9A and 9B, the intermediate drum 14 in this case assumes the function of a folding drum similar to the foil sheet folding drum 6 and the folding means may also be carried on the supporting item of another module or be permanently attached to the drum 14, remaining inactive in the hard packet version. In this case, the drum 15 predominantly assumes the function of a transfer drum and possibly also other additional functions. A second module 46 constructed in the same way as those described above carries the means used to feed the transverse closure strips 47 which are cut from endless webs drawn from reels 48, 48'. The feeder has two reel-carrying mandrels, one for an unwinding reel 48 and the other for a replacement reel 48', a subsequent unwinding unit 49 to unwind the head end of the replacement reel 48' and join it to the tail end of the nearly finished unwinding reel 48 and a cutting/applicator unit 50 which applies the transverse strip 47 to the top of the finished packet 20. In the example depicted, the cutting/applicator unit comprises a rotating strip-cutting knife 51 which cooperates with a feeder disc 52 rotating about a front-to-rear axis, a subsequent strip-carrying disc 53 which is frustoconical, with a 90° angle of aperture and is supported rotatably about an axis inclined at 45° in a vertical plane, pressing with one side on the feeder disc 52 and with the diametrically opposite side on the peripheral edge of an applicator disc 54 which rotates about a vertical axis. The applicator disc 54 has two or more diametrically opposite slots 154 complementary in shape and size to the top of the soft packet 20. The transverse strip 47 is taken and held on the underside of the applicator disc 54 over the slot 154, transversely to its longitudinal length, while the opposite slot 154 is in a coinciding position over the socket of the transfer disc 23. The sockets of said transfer disc 23 are formed in parts carried on the periphery of the disc 23 in such a way as to be rotatable about a radial axis and can be moved alternately between a position in which the package is oriented with the cigarette axes lying front-to-rear and a position in which the cigarette axes are oriented vertically, as shown in Figs. 7 and 10. This makes it possible to rotate the packet 20 into said vertical position and to apply the transverse strip 47 held over the slot 154 of the applicator disc 54 by pushing the packet 20 up through said slot 154 as indicated by the arrows in Figs. 7 and 10. The packet 20 is simultaneously fed to the inlet end of the lower transport track 18 of the magazine for storing discharged packets. As can be seen in Figs. 9A, 9B, in this version of the packaging machine the transport tracks 18, 19 are adjusted to enable rows of packets to be accommodated and transported in a standing-up position. Fig. 11 schematically indicates what must be done, that is what parts must be fitted to the machine in the basic version shown in Figs. 1A, 1B referenced 1, in order to construct a machine for packaging cigarettes in soft packets as indicated by 1S and in order to construct a machine for packaging cigarettes in hard packets as indicated by 1H. Converting the soft-packet machine into a hard-packet machine or vice versa is done by replacing the specific modules of one version for those of the other. In the alternative embodiment of Fig. 12, the packaging machine according to the invention is of a modular construction comprising three different blocks 101, 201, 301 such that block 101 can be coupled either to block 201 or to block 301 to produce either a machine 1H for packaging cigarettes in hard packets or a machine 1S for packaging cigarettes in soft packets. The arrangement of the different forming units on the front side of the machine as described in the previous version Figs. 1 to 11 makes it possible to separate the machines into two blocks approximately through a transverse mid plane. The block 101 is depicted in detail in Fig. 13 and is common to both versions 1S and 1H of the packaging machines. It comprises the feeder/gatherer of ordered groups of cigarettes from the hopper 2 containing the loose cigarettes, the forming unit which forms the foil wrapping around said ordered groups of cigarettes and the foil sheet feeder. The construction of the forming units and feeders is identical to that already described in the previous illustrative embodiment. Fig. 14 shows the block 301 which when coupled to block 101 produces the soft-packet version of the cigarette packaging machine. This block 301 carries, in the same way as was described for the previous illustrative embodiment, the forming unit which forms the packet wrapping around the groups of cigarettes in their foil wrapping, the feeder of packet wrapping sheets, the applicator of the transverse closure strip with the feeder of said transverse strip, and the magazine for storing discharged packets. The packet wrapping forming unit differs from that of the previous illustrative embodiment in that it comprises only two drums: a first feeder drum 13' and a second folding drum 14'. The drums 13' and 14' are of basically similar construction to that of the feeder drum 5 and folder drum 6 of the forming unit that forms the foil wrapping in block 101, the packet wrapping being formed by a wrapping sheet 44 in a similar way to the foil wrapping. The feeder drum 13' and the folding drum 14' are adjacent and in line with each other and in line with the feeder drum 5 and folding drum 6 of the foil wrapping forming unit, the front-to-rear axes of said drums all being contained within the same horizontal plane. The drums 13' and 14' likewise have radial sockets in which the groups of cigarettes are accommodated sideways in the radial direction of the drums. The foil-wrapped group of cigarettes is transferred directly from the foil sheet folding drum 6 to the feeder drum 13' of the unit which forms the packet wrapping. As already described, the feeder drum 13' has means for collecting and locating the packet wrapping sheets 44 which are much the same as those of the sheets of foil connected to the feeder drum 5. In addition, the block 301 differs from the previous illustrative embodiment as regards the discs for transferring the finished packet 20 from the packet wrapping forming unit to the applicator of the transverse closure strip and to the magazine for storing discharged packets. In the present case there is a single transfer disc 24' which is supported so as to rotate about a horizontal axis perpendicular to the front-to-rear axes of the drums 13', 14'. The transfer disc 24' is positioned vertically above the folding drum 14', displaced to one side of its topmost radial socket, and has at least two, and in particular four, peripheral sockets 124' in a cross arrangement, their construction being such as to accommodate the packet in a tangential direction, sideways and coplanar therewith. The transfer from the folding drum 14' to the transfer disc 24' is brought about by suitable push means which expel the packet 20 radially out of the folding drum 14' socket vertically upwards into a position of alignment with the corresponding transfer disc socket 124', while other push means move the packet 20 horizontally into the socket 124' parallel with itself, as indicated by the arrow 60. As can also be seen in Fig. 15, the applicator unit which applies the transverse closure strip 47 is essentially similar to that described earlier. There being no unit feeding in packs of blanks 30, the two reels 48, 48' are in this case horizontally adjacent to each other. The applicator disc 54 of the transverse closure strip applicator unit is positioned eccentrically with respect to the axis of the transfer disc 24', over the top of the finished packet 20, the latter having been rotated through 90° with respect to the position in which it was taken from the folding drum 14' and is displaced to one side of said transfer disc 24'. The transfer disc 24' rotates the finished packet 20 from the position in which the cigarette axes lie in the front-to-rear direction of the machine to the standing position where their axes are oriented vertically, the top of the packet being towards the slot 154 of the applicator disc 54. Thus, with the transfer disc 24' having been rotated through 90°, the packet 20 is pushed out of the socket 124' into a coinciding position underneath the slot 154 of the applicator disc 54 and is then pushed in the direction of the arrow 61 through said slot 154, thereby causing the transverse strip to be applied to the top of the packet as described in the previous embodiment, and simultaneously moving the packet 20 to the inlet of the magazine in which the discharged packets are stored. In the embodiment depicted in Fig. 14, the storage magazine has only one transport track 18, but it can also be built in a similar way to the illustrative embodiment described earlier. Figs. 18A and 18B illustrate the soft-packet version of the cigarette packaging machine denoted 1S in Fig. 12, produced by combining blocks 101 and 301. Figs. 16A and 16B illustrate the block 201 which, coupled to the previously described block 101, provides the hard-packet version of the cigarette packaging machine 1H. This block 201 comprises the forming unit which forms the hard packet around the foil-wrapped group of cigarettes, the feeder of blanks 130 from packs of blanks 30, the magazine 29 of blanks on the rear side of the machine, the feeder of the web of material, the unit 35, 34 which cuts and applies the collar 31 from said web of material and the magazine for storing discharged packets. In contrast to the previous illustrative embodiment relating to the convertible machine shown in Figs. 4A, 4B and 5, the hard packet forming unit has only two socketed drums 14' and 15' which are positioned vertically one above the other and rotate about axes parallel with the front-to-rear direction of the machine. The applicator disc 34 by which the collar 31 is applied cooperates directly with the drum 14' which feeds the foil-wrapped groups of cigarettes to the drum 15' above it which folds the blank 130 for the hard packet. The transfer from the foil sheet folding drum 6 to the drum 14' is brought about by a transfer disc 11' which rotates about a vertical axis and has peripheral sockets arranged in diametrically opposing pairs, e.g. forming a cross, and in such a way as to accommodate the foil-wrapped group of cigarettes in a tangential position with the cigarette axes in the front-to-rear direction of the machine, i.e. perpendicularly to its axis of rotation. A further point of difference with the previous illustrative embodiment is that instead of the transfer discs 23 and 24 for transferring the finished packet 20 from the blank 130 folding drum to the magazine where the discharged packets are stored, a spoked wheel 21' is provided, similar to that used to transfer finished packets 20 from the lower track 18 to the upper track 19 of the storage magazine. The spoked wheel 21' is so arranged that the finished packets 20 are transferred to it by a radial movement of expulsion from the drum 15', whereby the packet 20 is brought into axial coincidence with the socket 121 of the wheel 21' and then by an axial movement in the direction of the arrow 62. As can be seen in Figs. 19A and 19B, which illustrate the complete packaging machine 1H produced by combining blocks 101 and 201, the drums 14' and 15' of the hard packet forming unit and the transfer disc 11' are so positioned that said drums are in line with the drums 5 and 6 of the foil wrapping forming unit, while the transfer disc 11' extends underneath the folding drum 6 to a position where one of its peripheral sockets is vertically in line with the bottommost vertical socket of the folding drum 6. The group of cigarettes in their foil wrapping is therefore transferred to the transfer disc 11' by radial expulsion from the folding drum 6. On the diametrically opposite side of the transfer disc 11' the foil-wrapped group of cigarettes is transferred from the disc 11' to the drum 14' by a vertical upward movement followed by a radial movement towards the drum 14', the corresponding socket thereof being in alignment but vertically displaced upwards relative to the adjacent socket of the transfer disc 11'. Although the construction of the illustrative embodiments shown in Figs. 12 to 19A, 19B requires a greater expenditure to convert the packaging machine from the hard-packet version to the soft-packet version, on the other hand the blocks 201 and 301 have fewer working parts than the convertible machine shown in Figs. 1A, 1B to 11. In both the illustrated embodiments, all the working parts of the machine are arranged in a vertical front space of the machine and the path of the products being packaged and of the packaging materials also lies within this space. The width measured in the front-to-rear direction of the machine is such as to permit both direct visual monitoring of all packaging stages and of the working parts, and direct access by the operator to the products in the different stages of packaging and to the working components of the machine. In particular, this width is between approximately two and three times the axial length of the cigarettes. The invention is not of course limited to the embodiments described above and illustrated and can in fact be considerably altered and modified, especially as regards construction. Thus for example the packaging machine according to the invention may be constructed in a non-convertible version, i.e. for packaging cigarettes in either hard packets only or soft packets only; and all without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims: Packaging machine, especially a machine for packing cigarettes or the like, comprising: a feeder/gatherer (3, 103) of cigarettes in a succession of ordered groups of cigarettes from a magazine (2, 102) of loose cigarettes; a forming unit (5, 6) which forms an inner wrapping, especially one of foil, by folding a sheet of foil around each ordered group of cigarettes; a feeder of sheets of foil from a continuous web which is unwound from a reel (10); and for the forming of a so-called soft packet a subsequent packaging line with: a forming unit (13, 14, 15) which forms a packet wrapping around each group of cigarettes wrapped in the inner wrapping by folding a wrapping sheet (44) around it; a feeder (45) of wrapping sheets (44) to said forming unit (13, 14, 15) which forms the packet wrapping, from a web of wrapping, which is unwound from a reel (28); a subsequent unit (51 to 54) which applies a transverse closure strip (47) to the top of the packet, e.g. a tax label, monopoly label or the like and a feeder which feeds said transverse strips from a continuous web which is unwound from a reel (48); while for the forming of the so-called hard or box-like packet, there is an alternative subsequent packaging line with: a forming unit (13, 14, 15, 41, 34, 35) which forms hard packets by folding one or more blank parts (130, 31) corresponding to individual parts of a packaging box (hard packet) around each group of cigarettes in the foil wrapping; a feeder which feeds a succession of individual blanks from packs (30) of blanks lying on top of each other; optionally, in combination with said blank feeder, a further feeding/blanking unit for an optional further blank part (31) corresponding to a part of the packaging box, e.g. a so-called collar, from a web of material which is unwound from a reel (28); and also, downstream of said two alternative packaging lines, a magazine (18, 19) for storing discharged finished packets (20); and in which all the working parts and the path followed by the groups of cigarettes and wrapping materials are arranged and fit within a vertical space in the front side of the machine which is of small dimensions in the front-to-rear direction of the machine with respect to the total dimensions of the machine; said arrangements, said path and the front-to-rear dimensions of the vertical front space being such that the working parts and the cigarettes in various stages of packaging are directly accessible, visually and manually, to the operator, and wherein the forming units that form the so-called soft packet, those that form the hard packet (or box) and also those that form the inner foil wrapping comprise, respectively, one or more drums (5, 6, 13, 14, 15, 13', 14', 15') for folding the packaging material and for feeding the groups of cigarettes, which drums are supported on the end of a projecting spindle in said vertical space, are rotated about axes that lie in the front-to-rear direction of the machine and are aligned with each other, side by side or one above the other, in said vertical space, characterized in that the groups of cigarettes in the various stages of packaging are transferred from one forming unit to the next by socketed transfer discs (11, 23, 24, 11', 24') that are rotated about axes parallel to the vertical plane and perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction of the machine, especially vertical or horizontal axes, and that the vertical front space has a dimension in the front-to-rear direction of the machine that is approximately equal to the diameter of the transfer discs (11, 23, 24, 11', 24') that rotate about the vertical and horizontal axes perpendicular to said front-to-rear direction, and said dimension corresponds at all events to approximately a measure of from two to three times the axial length of the cigarettes or is slightly greater than this. Machine according to Claim 1, characterized in that the feeder/gatherer (3, 103) which forms the succession of groups of cigarettes and the magazine (18, 19) which stores the discharged packets are located in said vertical front space behind the folding and feeding drums (5, 6, 13, 14, 15, 13', 14', 15') of the forming units. Machine according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the reels (10, 28) on the feeder of the web of foil, of the web of wrapping for the soft packet and alternatively of the web of material for forming a part (31) of the blank corresponding to a hard packaging part or box are likewise located in the vertical front space and are aligned with the folding and feeding drums (5, 6, 13, 14, 15, 13', 14', 15') of the forming units. Machine according to one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that the reel (10) of the web of foil and the reel (28) of the web of wrapping or alternatively of the web of material for a part of the blank (collar) (31) are located in the lower part of one or other of the opposite ends of the machine, while the path of the groups of cigarettes during the packaging process is such that on the one hand the corresponding forming unit which forms the inner foil wrapping and on the other the mutually alternative forming units which form the wrapping for the soft packet or for the hard packet are located in that part of the machine which corresponds to the end having the associated reel (10, 28) of foil web and wrapping web for the soft packet or the reel of the web of material for the blank part (31) of the hard packet. Machine according to one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that the feeders of the foil web and wrapping web for the soft packet, and of the web of material for the blank part of the hard packet are provided with an automatic reel-changing device linked to a magazine for a row of replacement reels (10', 28') which extends in the front-to-rear direction of the machine from the rear side to the front side and in the lower area of the corresponding end, said magazine being accessible from the rear side of the machine and/or from the corresponding end. Machine according to one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that in the part (101) located on one side of basically a transverse midplane thereof, are the forming unit (5, 6) which forms the foil wrapping and the associated feeders/gatherers (3, 103) of the cigarettes and the foil sheet feeders, while on the other side of said midplane are the forming units (13, 14, 15) which form the soft packet wrapping or the hard packet with the associated feeders. Machine according to one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that it may be constructed in the specific version for making soft packets only or hard packets only. Machine according to one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that it is convertible from a machine for packaging cigarettes in soft packets into a machine for packaging cigarettes in hard packets and vice versa. Machine according to Claim 8, characterized in that the packet forming unit is made so as to be convertible into either of the two versions for forming the soft packet and hard packet, with the folding members and other specific members for forming the soft packet and hard packet associated with the drums (13, 14, 15), being mounted in their predetermined working positions on a supporting item (32, 40, 43, 46) which is releasably fixable in a predetermined position to the machine and is provided with means (33) for releasably coupling it to the drive unit of the machine. Machine according to Claim 9, characterized in that at least some of the working members, that is to say folders, locators and the like, for forming the soft packet and/or the hard packet may also be permanently connected to the drums (13, 14, 15) of the forming unit, being supported in an active position or simply driven only in the corresponding hard-packet or soft-packet version of the machine. Machine according to one or more of the previous Claims 8 to 10, characterized in that for the construction of the hard-packet version of the packaging machine there are two modules (32, 40) with working members designed to cooperate with the forming-unit drums (13, 14, 15) mounted permanently on the machine itself in its basic version, of which modules (32, 40) one (32) supports a cutting unit (35) which cuts a blank part (31) from a web of material (28) for making the hard packet (collar) and a disc (34) for applying said blank part (31) cooperating with the inlet drum (13) of the packet-wrapping forming unit, while the other (40) supports the folding means (41) cooperating with the outlet drum (15) of said forming unit, the means for feeding the packs of blanks (30) from a magazine (29) located on the rear side of the machine into said vertical space in a predetermined position and a feeder of a succession of individual blanks (130) from said packs (30) to the outlet drum (15). Packaging machine according to one or more of the previous Claims 8 to 10, characterized in that for the construction of a soft-packet version of the packaging machine there are two modules (43, 46) of which one (43) is provided with the unit which cuts and feeds wrapping sheets (44) to the inlet drum (13) located permanently on the machine of the packet wrapping forming unit, which wrapping sheet (28) is cut from a continuous web unwound from a reel (28), while the other (46) supports the unit (54) for applying the transverse closure strip (47) of the soft packet and the feeder/cutter of said transverse strips (47) from a reel of web material (48, 48'), the means for collecting and locating the wrapping sheet (44) being located permanently on the machine and connected to or integrated in the inlet drum (13) of the packet wrapping forming unit and being able to be activated and deactivated on command, and the means of folding the wrapping sheet (44) around the foil-wrapped group of cigarettes likewise being permanently connected to a drum (14) located permanently between the inlet and outlet drums (13, 15). Machine according to one or more of the previous Claims 8 to 12, characterized in that for the reels of wrapping web for the soft packet and the reels of the web of material for the blank part (collar) of the hard packet, the same feeder is used with the same magazine and the same automatic reel changer. Machine according to one or more of the previous Claims 1 to 7, characterized in that it is of a modular construction, comprising a common block (101) containing the feeder/gatherer (3, 103) of a succession of ordered groups of cigarettes from a magazine (2) of loose cigarettes, the forming unit (5, 6) which forms the inner foil wrapping and the corresponding feeder of sheets of foil with its magazine of replacement reels (10') and the automatic reel changer, to which common block (101), downstream of the forming unit (5, 6) which forms the inner foil wrapping, there can be fitted, releasably and each being replaceable by the other, two different blocks (201, 301), one (301) for forming the soft packet and containing the forming unit (13', 14') which completely forms the outer wrapping of the packet, the associated feeder of the web of wrapping, the magazine of replacement reels (28') and the automatic reel changer, in addition to the applicator (54) of the transverse closure strip (47) with its feeder and the magazine (18) for storing discharged packets, and the other (301) for forming the hard packet (box) containing the forming unit (14', 15', 41) which completely forms the hard packet, the feeder of the succession of blanks (130) from packs of blanks (30) and the feeding/cutting unit (35, 34) which produces a blank part for another part of the box (collar) from a web of material and the associated magazine for the replacement reels (28') and the reel changer and magazine (18, 19) for storing discharged packets.

Inventors: SPADA VALTER, TOSI GIUSEPPE, SPADA, VALTER, TOSI, GIUSEPPE
Applicants: SASIB TOBACCO SPA, SASIB TOBACCO S.P.A.
Application year: 1994
Main classification: B65B59
IPC codes: B65B19, B65B59